Money is a Drug?

(Source : http://www.richdad.com/Resources/Rich-Dad-Financial-Education-Blog/October-2013/Breaking-the-Money-Addiction.aspx)

"Money is a drug." - Rich dad

When we were kids, rich dad didn't pay his son Mike and me for the work we did for him. Some people were upset about this because they thought he was being exploitive. But rich dad was really doing Mike and me a favor.

The main reason that rich dad refused to pay us while we worked for him was because he never wanted us to become addicted to working for money. "If you become addicted to money," he said, 'it's hard to break that addiction."

Money is a drug?

Rich dad called money a drug because he observed people who were happy when they had money and upset or moody when they didn't. Just as heroin addicts get high when they inject the drug, they also get moody and upset when they don't have it.

Rich dad also noted that people got comfortable with their dealers when it came to money and found it hard to trust other ways to make money. "Be careful of money's addictive power," he often said. "Once you get used to receiving it, that addiction keeps you attached to the way you got it."

Put another way, if you receive money as an employee, then you get accustomed to that way of acquiring it. If you get used to generating money by being self-employed, it's often difficult to break the attachment to earning money that way. And if you get used to government handouts, that too, is a hard pattern to break.

Break the addiction

Rich dad believed it was hard for people to learn how to move from being an employee (E) or a self-employed (S) person (the left side of the CASHFLOW Quadrant) to a business owner (B) or investor (I) (the right side of the CASHFLOW Quadrant) because it was hard to break addictions to the way we're used to earning our money.

"The hardest part about moving from the left side of the CASHFLOW Quadrant to the right side is the attachment you have to the way you are used to earning money," he said. "It's more than breaking a habit. It's breaking an addiction." That is why he never stressed to Mike and me to work for money, but instead encouraged us to change the way we think and focus on growing as people rather than earning money.

Know your patterns

The first step in breaking the addiction of money and the way you make it is to identify the patterns that have conditioned you. The real issue is the change you must go through internally and who you become in the process. For some, the process is easy. For others, it may be impossible.

For Kim and me, the hardest part in trying to become people who generate income in the B and I quadrants was that all of our past conditioning was holding us back. When we were really down and facing over $1 million in debt while trying to build a new business, it was tough when friends said, "Why are you doing this? Why don't you get a job?" It was even more difficult because there was a part of us that also wanted to go back to the security of a paycheck.

For us it was helpful to remind ourselves that this desire for safety in a job was really a default to our conditioning. The world of money is one large system, and we all operate in certain patterns within that system.

An E works for the system

An S is the system

A B creates, owns, and/or controls the system

An I invests money into the system

"When a person feels the need for money," rich dad said, "an E will look for a job, and S will do something alone, a B will create or buy a system that produces money, and an I will look for an opportunity to invest in an asset that produces more money."

Breaking your addiction to money and how you make it requires understanding these patterns and knowing how you operate when faced with fear.

Focus on your passion

Once you know the patterns of money and how you respond when you need money, the key to moving past your addiction to money and the way you make it is to focus on your passion rather than on making money. You must be more worried about keeping your dreams alive than your financial survival.

Fear often can push our passion to the wayside. It takes intention and courage to focus on your passion when you are afraid, but it is the only way forward. The alternative is simply to give up and default to your natural patterns. And change never happens that way.

Today, take stock of how you're living. Are you defaulting to patterns caused by your addiction to money? Or are you breaking your addictions and following your passion?

Kredit Kad yang terbaik

Mari cerita pasal kredit kad lagi.


Kalau anda merupakan pengguna kredit kad yang tegar, anda patut tahu kad bank mana yang sesuai dengan penggunaan anda. Dengan menggunakan yang betul, kita dapat memaksimakan keuntungan dari penggunaan tersebut. Jangan main swipe sahaja. Rugi. Caj kredit kad amat mahal. Kalau tak guna dengan cara yang betul, kita rugi bayar faedah buta2 sahaja.


Ok maklumat ini diperolehi dari majalah Personal Money edisi ke 130.


Saya kasi rumusan kad terbaik berdasarkan penggunaan utama.


1. Kaki makan - OCBC Titanium Mastercard (5% rebate kat banyak restoran utama seluruh dunia)


2. Kaki jalan - Citibank PremierMiles ( banyak benefit kat airport dan kumpul points)


3. Groceries aka Barang dapur - Cari kad yang ada kerjasama dengan hypermarket seperti Giant Citibank kad, Tesco RHB cad etc ( dapat rebate dari pembelian)


4. Petrol - bergantung kepada minyak apa yang kita pakai tapi secara kasar nya CIMB Petronas Mastercard bagi rebate yang agak menarik flat 2%.


5. Graduan muda - UOB ONE Card ( bagi banyak rebate )


6. Kaki tak reti nak bayar habis baki cc setiap bulan - Maybankard 2 Platinum Card ( rate interest paling murah 8.88% per year)


Kalau anda nak tahu lebih detail, sila beli majalah Personal Money tu ye. Saya malas nak tulis panjang2 hahaha....

Anda sorok duit anda dari pasangan?

Adakah anda berbincang secara terbuka dengan pasangan anda tentang isu kewangan keluarga? 

Dalam perkahwinan, antara punca utama krisis rumah tangga adalah faktor kewangan. 

Saya mengenali beberapa rakan yang merahsiakan status kewangan mereka daripada pasangan mereka. 

Ada satu kisah si suami ada akaun simpanan asing yang dirahsiakan demi untuk kelangsungan keluarga kerana pasangan beliau tidak begitu bijak dalam berbelanja. Jika si isteri tahu suami ada duit lebihan yang disimpan, pasti akan dipujuk untuk dibelanjakan ke atas perkara2 yang tidak begitu penting seperti nak beli barangan katalog yang dijual rakan sekerja di pejabat, tukar perabut baru sebab jeles dengan rakan sejiran atau akan diberikan pada sedara mara yang mengendeng kalau tahu ada sedara lain yang ada duit  etc.

Ada kisah lain pula si isteri yang terpaksa ada akaun rahsia sebab si suami tidak begitu pandai berhemah dalam berbelanja. Jika ada duit lebih, pasti akan dihabiskan dengan keluar bersama rakan2, rokok, modify kereta etc. Nasib baik si isteri masih ada wawasan dan cita2 yang besar untuk meningkatkan taraf kewangan keluarga.

Pada saya senario begitu agak menyedihkan. 

Sepatutnya sebagai pasangan hidup, kita perlu bergerak secara satu pasukan untuk mencapai matlamat kewangan BERSAMA. Bukan matlamat kewangan seorang sahaja. Lebih2 lagi jika kedua2 pasangan itu bekerja. Itu yang dinamakan sinergi. Jika usaha secara individu pasti amat meletihkan dan lambat untuk mencapai matlamat yang diinginkan. 

Anda pula bagaimana? 

Mitos2 dalam Pelaburan Hartanah

Salam Sejahtera semua!

Saya terbaca satu artikel menarik yang ditulis oleh Mr CK Wong, seorang pelabur hartanah yang berada di Sabah. Boleh refer posting beliau di sini.

Beliau menulis dalam English so saya cuba olah balik dalam BM.

Berikut adalah antara mitos yang sentiasa menghantui pelabur2 yang baru hendak berjinak2 dalam pelaburan hartanah :

Mitos 1 : Pelaburan Hartanah memerlukan modal yang sangat besar

Mitos 2 : Semua penyewa adalah penyewa yang jahat

Mitos 3 : Hanya beli hartanah pelaburan yang sempurna

Mitos 4 : Tunggu sehingga good deal datang ke riba

Mitos 1 : Pelaburan Hartanah memerlukan modal yang sangat besar

Memang tidak dinafikan, satu isu besar yang dihadapi oleh pelabur yang baru berjinak adalah modal awal seperti deposit, kos legal, kos baik pulih etc. Jika dikira secara kasar, seeloknya kita perlu ada modal awal dalam lingkungan 20% dari harga rumah yang hendak dibeli. Namum ini tidak bermakna kena ada sehingga puluhan ribu untuk mula membeli hartanah. Jika anda tahu caranya, beli hartanah dengan tanpa modal(atau kos yang amat minima) pun boleh dilakukan.

Cuma saya tidak galakkan anda terus mencari teknik beli rumah tanpa modal sebelum anda mampu membeli rumah dengan modal. Ini adalah kerana asas pelaburan yang berjaya adalah pengurusan kewangan yang baik. Jika modal awal pun anda tidak mampu lakukan, adakah anda fikir anda mampu mengawal aliran tunai pelaburan anda dengan baik?

Mula dengan asas yang kukuh dahulu. Bila dah handal nanti, baru guna pakai teknik2 yang lebih advance.

Mitos 2 : Semua penyewa adalah penyewa yang jahat

Ramai orang cerita tentang masalah buruk mereka untuk berurusan dengan penyewa. Penyewa tak bayar sewa, penyewa lari malam, rosakkan hartanah, curi barang dalam rumah etc etc. Kalau cerita di sini memang tidak akan habis. Akibat dari cerita sebegini, ramai yang mengambil jalan mudah dengan mengatakan pelaburan hartanah bukan untuk mereka.

Namun adakah anda tahu, mengikut pengalaman saya sendiri, secara anggaran hanya 10% sahaja penyewa di luar sana yang membawa 1001 satu masalah. Baki 90% yang lain merupakan penyewa yang bagus dan boleh diharap.

Kunci utama di sini adalah untuk belajar teknik pengurusan penyewa bermula dari peringkat pemilihan sehingga ke peringkat menamatkan sewaan. Ramai orang yang gagal mendapatkan penyewa yang baik sebab mereka ambil mudah perkara ini. Bila dah terkena, baru nak kecoh2 heboh satu kampung cakap penyewa mereka jahat.

Adakah hanya kerana 10% penyewa yang jahat, anda memilih untuk membuang mengabaikan 90% penyewa yang baik di luar sana?

Mitos 3 : Hanya beli hartanah pelaburan yang sempurna

Tidak saya nafikan, mungkin ada pelaburan hartanah yang sempurna di luar sana. Harga amat murah, lokasi strategik, penyewa yang sempurna, hartanah terjaga rapi etc. Namun jumlah nya amat2 sedikit dan jarang untuk kita jumpa. Malah jika hartanah tersebut sangat sempurna, adakah anda ingat anda seorang sahaja yang ingin memilikinya? Tidak logik kan? Berebut lah korang nanti.

Sekiranya satu pelaburan hartanah tersebut memenuhi 70-80% dari kriteria kita, ianya sudah cukup bagus. Bertindaklah. Jangan tunggu hanya kerana hendakkan pelaburan yang 100% memenuhi kriteria kita. Sebab masa berjalan. Masa yang sudah terlepas tidak akan kembali lagi.

Akan tetapi jika apa kriteria kita pun kita tidak tahu, jangan beli dahulu. Back to the drawing board. Jangan beli sebab orang lain pun beli. Tu namanya cari nahas.

Mitos 4 : Tunggu sehingga good deal datang ke riba

Mitos ini agak berkait dengan mitos 3. Ramai yang hendak melabur tetapi malas hendak mencari. Selepas gagal 3-4 kali, terus nak mengalah. Nak duduk diam2 tapi nak dapat duit. Waduh2 !

Pelaburan hartanah yang baik perlu dicarik. Kena rajin. Benda ni merupakan satu proses. Dari 100 hartanah yang kita lihat, hanya 10 yang boleh dikaji dengan lebih mendalam. Dari 10 tersebut, hanya 3 yang sesuai untuk dikejar sehingga dapat. Dari 3, cuma 1 yang kita dapat. Ianya adalah permainan nombor. Lagi banyak anda carik, lagi banyak pelaburan yang baik akan anda perolehi.

Saya juga sentiasa menerima permintaan2 seperti berikut " bro, kalau ada rumah dalam range 20-30% below market yang bagus untuk pelaburan, pastu boleh buat mark up loan, tolong sound aku k, aku nak beli". Jika anda di tempat saya, apa yang anda akan lakukan agak2nya? Hehehe...

Mitos2 di atas perlu diubah dari minda fikiran kita jika kita ingin berjaya dalam pelaburan hartanah. Saya tidak nafikan bukan mudah untuk kita berubah sekelip mata namun anggap ia sebagai satu proses mematangkan diri. Lagi selalu anda buat, lagi mudah untuk anda di kemudian hari.

Lagi satu, bertindak sekarang! Jangan tunggu2 sampai anda rasa 'bersedia'. Memang sampai bila2 anda tidak akan bersedia. Paling busuk pun mulakan dengan membaca buku2 pelaburan yang berkaitan. Jika itu pun anda malas nak buat, pergi main jauh2. Teruskan buat apa yang anda buat sekarang dan jangan mula melabur sebab kelak duit anda yang akan hangus sendiri.

Peringatan untuk Pengguna Kad Kredit

Kepada pengguna2 kad kredit yang membaca blog ini, saya ingin berpesan supaya anda membuat pembayaran penuh ke atas baki hutang kad kredit anda setiap bulan.

Pada ketika ini, pihak bank seperti bank HSBC, UOB, CITIBANK dan AMBANK sudah mengemaskini tariff faedah ke atas baki hutang kad kredit yang tertunggak di antara 15% ke 18% seperti jadual dibawah :

Bayaran denda lewat juga sudah dinaik kan sebanyak di antara rm10 hingga rm100 ( bergantung kepada bank) di mana kadar denda lewat sebelum ini hanya rm5 sahaja.

( sumber maklumat dari majalah Personal Money keluaran april 2012)

Perkara yang boleh dilakukan jika tidak dapat masuk U

5 Things to Do Instead of College

Posted on: Tuesday, April 03, 2012|Written by: Robert Kiyosaki

The path to financial freedom is financial — not traditional — education.

New numbers are out on the cost of attending a four-year university. According to The Daily Ticker, U.S. college student loans eclipsed $1 trillion in debt—more than credit card debt—with students borrowing $117 billion last year alone.

The average student loan debt burden now stands at $45,000 at graduation. With an extremely high unemployment rate for recent grads and those in their twenties, the prospect for many grads to pay off these loans with high-paying jobs is dim. Many stories are surfacing of Harvard grads working at Starbucks and honor students doing second, unpaid internships.

These numbers are leading experts to speculate that student loans may be the next bubble to burst.

When I was a kid, my poor dad wanted me to go to college. For him, as an educator, life was about getting into a good school, getting a good job, saving money, buying a house, and investing in a diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

For many people in my poor dad’s generation, this plan worked and provided a steady, moderate lifestyle that was safe.

My rich dad wanted me to be an entrepreneur. He believed college was for those who would be employees, not entrepreneurs, because it didn’t teach you anything about money, investing, or running a business. Instead, it taught you how to do as you’re told to advance up the corporate ladder.

I ended up going to college at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. In many ways, I’m thankful for what I learned there, such as discipline and critical-thinking skills. But I didn’t learn anything I couldn’t have learned elsewhere, and I certainly didn’t use my degree to make my fortune. I wouldn’t pay what our students have to pay today in order to do it again.

It’s a new world of money, and a new world for young people. The old rules of money, including go to college, simply won’t work for most.

So, I thought I’d offer five things you could do instead of going to college.

Work to learn.

When I graduated from college, I had the opportunity to work in the shipping industry and make good money. But I knew that I didn’t want to be an employee. I wanted to be an entrepreneur.

So instead of take a sure thing, I did the risky thing — I took a job as a salesman at Xerox making next-to-nothing in a field I was not experienced in. Why? I knew I needed sales skills in order to be successful in business. At Xerox, I could learn those valuable skills while getting paid.

At first I was the worst salesman on staff, but as I learned on the job and applied myself, I became our top salesman. Those sales skills have paid off more than anything I ever learned in college.

Explore non-traditional education.

There are important skills you can learn outside of the traditional, four-year institution that will help you depending on what you want to do with your life.

Many community colleges offer courses on investing hosted by professionals rather than professors. Also, you can learn important new-world skills like computer programming, web design, and more at a fraction of the cost. Rather than spend four years wondering what you want to do, racking up debt and taking classes you’ll never use, figure out what you want to do and take specific classes that will benefit you in the future at a fraction of the cost.

Additionally, build your financial education by attending seminars, reading books, taking classes, and hiring a coach. All of these services are widely available, including through our Rich Dad Education programs.

Begin investing.

If you have to spend $45,000 to get a degree just to work at Starbucks, you might as well skip the debt, get a job at Starbucks, save some money, invest in your financial education, and begin investing. Find an asset class that you’re interested in, learn all that you can, and use the money you would have spent on college to start building your financial future now rather than later.

Start a business.

For most people, the whole point of college is to get a good job. Chances are that if you’re reading this, you think differently than most people. Some of the most successful business owners and entrepreneurs I know never went to college or dropped out. They understood that they could spend all their time, youth, energy, and talent putting money in other people’s pockets and building other people’s dreams, or they could use those resources for their own pockets and dreams. If you have a good business idea, run with it now.

Serve your community.

Finally, spread some goodwill with some of the free time you’ll have from not writing term papers on ancient history at three in the morning.

A lot of people want to serve their community but never seem to have time. “I’ll do it after college,” they say. Then it’s, “I’ll do it after this internship.” Then, “I’ll do it after the kids are older.” It goes on and on.

I’m a firm believer that helping others is not only good for your soul but also good for your financial future. As the old proverb goes, if you plant good things, good things will be harvested.

Serving your community allows you to think outside your world, make connections with people you’d never meet otherwise, identify needs and opportunities, figure out ways to meet those needs, and opens many doors that would otherwise be closed—all while doing something worthwhile and good.

To me, artikel ini sangat well written. Apa yang aku belajar kat U dulu, rasanya tak sampai 5% pun aku guna dalam kerjaya yang aku buat sekarang ni. Kalau dari dulu aku tahu, masa lepas SPM pasti aku akan terus cari cara macam mana nak dapatkan fund dan kemudian terus melabur dalam asset class yang aku suka. By the time orang lain graduate, aku dah capai financial freedom...Kan best macam tu?

Bravo to Bank Negara!

Baru2 ini, ada keluar berita tentang usaha persatuan-persatuan automotif untuk melobi bank negara agar melonggarkan syarat baru pembiayaan yang baru diperkenalkan awal tahun ini. Syarat baru ini menetapkan pemohon pinjaman perlu dinilai dari segi gaji bersih dan bukan gaji kasar yang diamalkan sebelum ini.

Antara kesan ketara adalah peratusan jualan kereta merosot dengan sungguh mendadak. Ini mengakibatkan persatuan automotif seperti Perodua dan Proton melobi kepada bank negara agar melonggarkan syarat pinjaman. Namun setelah perbincangan dilakukan, bank negara tetap berpegang teguh dengan syarat tersebut dan menyatakan syarat tersebut tidak akan menghalang bakal peminjam yang layak dan dinilai mampu untuk membuat pembelian. Syabas diucapkan!

Berita sebegini yang kita perlu elakkan...

( sumber : http://beritasemasa.com/pinjaman-kereta-vs-hutang-isi-rumah-malaysia)

Usaha bank negara ini perlu dilihat dari sudut yang positif. Ianya bertujuan untuk mengekang kadar pinjaman yang semakin tinggi dan dilihat boleh merosakkan sistem ekonomi jika tidak dibendung dari awal. Saya sememangnya amat bersetuju dengan langkah tersebut.

Kalau kita mampu dan layak untuk beli kereta, tiada apa yang perlu dirisaukan. Kalau gaji kecil, janganlah berhasrat besar. Ukut baju di badan sendiri. Kalau gaji bersih kita memang cukup, tiada masalah untuk mendapatkan pinjaman. Kalau bank tolak permohonan kita, lihat balik penyata kewangan kita di mana yang kurang. Mungkin kita boleh belajar sesuatu di situ.

Jika diperhatikan, yang melobi merupakan pengeluar kereta tempatan. Bukannya syarikat besar seperti Honda, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes etc. Ini satu petanda ramai pembeli yang membeli kereta tempatan sebenarnya tidak 'mampu' dari pandangan kaca mata bank negara. Sesuatu yang perlu direnungkan. Kalau nak beli kereta tapi terpaksa buat ansuran selama 9 tahun sebab tak boleh nak bayar ansuran yang lebih tinggi, tu bukan mampu la namanya tu. Elok fikirkan kenderaan alternatif yang lebih mampu dimiliki atau tingkatkan kemampuan kewangan terlebih dahulu sebelum membuat pembelian.

Apa2 pun, syabas sekali lagi kepada bank negara.

Agak2 kerajaan nak dengar ke rintihan sebegini?

Fix the economy, say struggling new-generation voters

By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal, Lisa J. Ariffin, Farhan Darwis and Lee Wei Lian

February 14, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 14 — The government’s talk of economic transformation and reform has little resonance with the nation’s newest batch of voters who are suffering from the erosion of spending power in the country which they feel has made it a struggle to survive and clouds their future.

Unlike the older generation of voters who were able to easily pay off a house and a car within a few years of starting work, today’s generation of young adult workers find themselves in debt before they even start working and are looking at 20-30 years to pay off a house, if they can even afford one, and as long as nine years to pay off a car.

The country is also grappling with poor purchasing power as reflected by KL’s ranking in the 2011 Prices and Wages report by Swiss bank UBS AG, placing a lowly 49 among major global cities, down from 47 in 2010.

Melissa Low: Food and branded goods cheaper in Singapore.

While wages have largely remained unchanged for the past two to three decades, inflation has been steadily rising, hitting 3.2 per cent last year with prices of food and beverages increasing even faster at 4.8 per cent.

A poll of young working adults by The Malaysian Insidershowed that that they were concerned that the difference between wages and the cost of living had reached a critical stage, with many looking at the prospect of either meagre savings or high debt and feeling hard pressed to survive without family assistance.

Among some of the suggested actions the government take were to set minimum wage levels while capping inflation.

Rashaad Ali, 23, who works as a writer for Groupon Malaysia, said that cost of living was of paramount importance since he became a taxpayer.

Phillip Tay: I’d vote for a government that looks into stagnant wages.

As a young adult, it is at the forefront of my mind especially since I started paying tax,” he said. “The immediate future is a big question mark of survival, while questionable usage of EPF funds makes me wonder for my ‘retirement’ as well. While I should put equal stock in my own ability to take care of myself, there are things that are simply out of my control which I expect my government to handle.”

Biotech graduate Phillip Tay, 27, who works as a marketing executive with a publishing house, feels that many graduates are underpaid, and that ultimately it is government who should decided on basic wage levels.

“Wages have been stagnant for way too long. There should be government enforcement, the government should raise it up,” he said.

“I graduated with a degree in biotechnology. I look at my peers... many of them barely make more money than a SPM leaver... I might as well be selling insurance,” he said. “What the government can do is come up with policies that can help address the issue of stagnant wages, prices are going up but wages aren’t. I’d vote for a government which can look into that.”

Melissa Low, 26, who works as an accountant with an European multinational in Singapore but is a registered voter, said she left Malaysia partly due to the better purchasing power across the Causeway.

“The money is better and the inflation in Malaysia is very high,” she said. “Food, clothing, branded items are all more affordable in Singapore if you earn a Singapore salary.”

Mohd Abdul Wahid Rosmat, 26, a warehouse worker in Sekinchan, Selangor, said he was feeling the effects of the country’s inflation rate keenly.

“Prices will just rise suddenly and sometimes, the price increase doesn’t make sense,” he said. “With our wages not keeping up with prices, the value of our money is shrinking.”

Rachel Tan, 23, who works as an accounts executive at an online advertising company, said young working adults are “stuck”.

“There’s poverty of a different kind,” she said. “There’s a lot more debts at this age... someone my age already has so many loans to repay even before they can own a home, once they get out of university.”

Malacca-born Mohd Fareez Azman, 25, who now lives in Shah Alam, said prices have gone completely out of kilter with salaries.

“Wages are very different from the cost of living,” he said. “Salaries should be in balance with prices, even if it’s not high, it should at least be higher than the cost of living.”

While the government has promised to cut back on subsidies under its reform programmes, some such as Yanti, a 24-year-old cook from Parit 5, Sekinchan, believed that the government needed to keep forking out subsidies and helping the poor, because many cannot cope with ever-increasing prices of daily goods.

Rachel Tan: Young adults are stuck in debt even before starting work.

“I’ve been working as a cook for three years, but my pay is stagnant, but the prices are increasing. Both me and my husband’s combined pay does not even add up to RM3,000. How do we live?”

Ibrahim Suffian, head of the opinion research firm Merdeka Center, said the government’s rhetoric on economic transformation has little traction with the younger voters.

“Whoever can do better to address the practical needs of the younger voters and communicate this via a wider set of channels will benefit at the polls,” he said.

James Chin, head of the School of Social Sciences at Monash University, Sunway in Petaling Jaya, said the cost of living would be the number one issue in the coming general election which was likely why the government has been giving out assistance such as vouchers and cash grants to low-income households.

He noted however that the public was largely cynical over the efforts and it was not sustainable over the long run.

“The government needs to address the structure of the economy,” he said. “Wages are stagnant and the cost of living has gone up. They need to reform the entire economy.”

Economists have said that inefficiency, lack of competition and an undervalued ringgit are the reasons behind higher prices and the country’s distorted purchasing power for imported goods.

The cost of the two big ticket items — houses and cars — are often prohibitive for even the majority of older workers.

Yanti: Pay is stagnant but prices are increasing.

While the government has taken limited steps to address housing affordability, such as imposing a cap on the value of third housing loans and above, it has not tackled the exorbitant excise duties which make cars by foreign brands so unaffordable.

Taken together with the country’s relatively low salary base, the purchasing power of the average worker in KL as calculated by UBS is 60 per cent or more lower than that in Los Angeles or Sydney and only about half that of a worker in Tokyo.

With more than 30 per cent of Malaysians reportedly earning less than RM700 a month, the Najib administration has been mulling the introduction of a minimum wage but no decision has yet been reached as government officials fear it could cause higher unemployment and loss of competitiveness.

Pakatan Rakyat has also said that it is in favour of a minimum wage.

Young voters meanwhile will be scrutinising the efforts of both the ruling party and the federal opposition to restructure the economy.

“For me, I will vote a government that will continue to provide aid, to help us. It’s difficult living when everything has a price,” said Yanti.

(Sumber : http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/fix-the-economy-say-struggling-new-generation-voters)

Pendapat Saya :

Generasi muda ( Gen y? ) Malaysia memang amat terkesan dengan kadar inflasi pada masa kini.

Jika dibandingkan, kadar pendapatan untuk graduan muda tidak banyak berbeza dengan kadar 10 tahun yang lepas. Akan tetapi, harga barang keperluan naik sungguh mendadak dan tidak berpadanan dengan pendapatan yang diterima.

Kerajaan Malaysia begitu gah bercerita tentang pembangunan ekonomi yang sungguh boombastik. Projek mega sana, projek mega sini. Rakyat dijanjikan dengan kemewahan hasil limpahan kejayaan projek mega. Namun apa yang terjadi tidak seperti yang diharapkan. Rakyat biasa tidak begitu terasa dengan hasil kejayaan projek mega tersebut malah kuasa membeli yang ada semakin merosot.

Seperti biasa, apa yang mampu saya sarankan kepada golongan muda kita, jaga kewangan anda dengan baik. Jangan harapkan orang lain untuk bantu kita. Jangan salahkan orang lain jika anda dalam keadaan yang sesak sekarang. Ianya tidak akan mengubah apa-apa. Sekurang-kurangnya jika anda mengambil tanggungjawab untuk mengubah keadaan diri sendiri, sesuatu yang positif boleh dihasilkan.

Kalau anda masih kelabu, tidak tahu bagaimana hendak mula, boleh beli buku RWDS hasil karangan Pakdi. Sangat sesuai untuk golongan muda yang baru hendak memulakan hidup dan mengawal situasi kewangan sendiri.

Oh ya! Jangan terlalu taksub dengan kehebatan gulungan ijazah yang anda ada. Reality sucks! Lagi cepat anda sedar, lagi cepat anda akan bertindak. Jika anda rasa anda tidak dibayar sepadan dengan apa yang anda ada, buat perubahan. Di dunia sebenar, ijazah anda hanyalah segulung kertas. Apa yang anda mampu beri kepada orang lain yang akan menjadi penanda aras nilai sebenar anda di dunia pekerjaan.